Brookings ranks Waynesburg University in top 10 percent nationwide for value-added

The Brookings Institution recently scored institutions of higher education based on the value the colleges added to student outcomes, ranking Waynesburg University higher than 92 percent of 1,666 four-year colleges analyzed nationwide.

The nonprofit organization devoted to independent research and innovative policy solutions measured the value colleges add to student outcomes, irrespective of student characteristics, based on the earnings of alumni. As Brookings describes on their website, value-added measures provide a more equal way to compare colleges and attempt to isolate the contribution of a college to student outcomes.

“We take pride in yet another national distinction that highlights the value of a Waynesburg University education,” said Waynesburg University President Douglas G. Lee. “Our students are being challenged on a daily basis, gaining skills that they are successfully employing in the workforce.”

The research builds upon the Obama administration’s new College Scorecard database that produced value-added rankings for 3,173 colleges (1,507 two-year colleges and 1,666 four-year colleges). According to Brookings, the College Scorecard database “represents a substantial improvement in data quality and transparency in higher education.”

This recognition follows Waynesburg’s recent ranking in the top 100 of a national Social Mobility Index (SMI) by CollegeNET, which rates schools based on how well they help students improve their economic status. Ranked at No. 66, Waynesburg University was the only school in Pennsylvania to break the top 100 on the national list.

Additionally, The Economist recently released their first-ever college rankings, which measured 1,275 colleges and universities based on how much graduates actually earn verses their projected earnings. Waynesburg ranked in the top 100 nationwide.